Has Barack Obama’s presidency already failed? In normal times, this would be a ludicrous question. But these are not normal times. They are times of great danger. Today, the new US administration can disown responsibility for its inheritance; tomorrow, it will own it. Today, it can offer solutions; tomorrow it will have become the problem. Today, it is in control of events; tomorrow, events will take control of it. Doing too little is now far riskier than doing too much. If he fails to act decisively, the president risks being overwhelmed, like his predecessor. The costs to the US and the world of another failed presidency do not bear contemplating.
What is needed? The answer is: focus and ferocity. If Mr Obama does not fix this crisis, all he hopes from his presidency will be lost. If he does, he can reshape the agenda. Hoping for the best is foolish. He should expect the worst and act accordingly.
Yet hoping for the best is what one sees in the stimulus programme and ”“ so far as I can judge from Tuesday’s sketchy announcement by Tim Geithner, Treasury secretary ”“ also in the new plans for fixing the banking system. I commented on the former last week. I would merely add that it is extraordinary that a popular new president, confronting a once-in-80-years’ economic crisis, has let Congress shape the outcome.
Read it all (subscriber only).
Yeah, the markets really took to the new TARP and “stimulus” bills like fish to water, didn’t they? They’re so happy, they’re swimming upside down.
Reward failure, get more of it.
But Jeffersonian, don’t you know? Tim Geithner is the only one in the entire country who can get us out of this mess – that’s why his tax fraud was allowed to be overlooked – he’s brilliant!
Dr. Harmon, I suggest you change the post. This article is available to non-subscribers; I just clicked and read it.
The financial papers seem to be unanimous in feeling that the Geithner Treasury is not taking a sufficient or logical approach. Not that Paulus did either; but it’s time to face facts and stop playing around. The old big bank investment model has failed, and it’s time to bite the bullet and let failing institutions — fail.
Katherine, I agree. Can you help me on something else? I believe there were some banking facilities that came into being during this big monetary flap just to load up on this “easy money”, and some were not even Amercan based. When you step into deep water you better be ready to swim out – by yourself.
Don’t know, Harvey, so I can’t help you.
Do we seriously think that if these efforts fail (measured how exactly?) that the Obama Administration will “own responsibility”? No matter what bad happens – it will not be the fault of his (and Congress’) policies. And whatever good happens – they will take credit for it (without asking hard questions about real causes and effects).
If (as many economists seem to state) recessions are generally cyclical and two years from now the economy cycles back to health Obama will claim success. If the economy does not recover as well as it normally would because of Obama/Congress we will here how we “saved” 3-4 million jobs that “otherwise would have been lost” or we will be told that the policies were not given enough time and/or that we did not do enough and must throw more trillions of dollars around.
Yessiree – I predict we will have unverifiable results (how exactly do you measure jobs “saved that otherwise would have been lost” or distinguish cyclical recovery from results of government action) based on unproven (if not outright disproven) theories.